Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft Unveils A Designer Mouse
jeckil writes "Today Microsoft unveiled the new Starck mouse; a new shiny mouse designed to take the 'cool' from other mice such as Logitech or Apple. Microsoft is calling it the 'first museum-quality mouse.' Looks shiny enough to be on a museum display along with other succesful Microsoft products."
The only cause for celebration (their words, not mine...) is more money for a questionable product. I'm not judging the quality of this new optical mouse, just wondering what would make it worth the money (if you "buy", you get links for prices ranging from $25 to $31). Sure it may look pretty, but really, it's another mouse with another pitch from MS about why you should buy THEIRS! Come one, really! A museum piece? I don't think so.
This just doesn't feel like news. It feels like a free ad.
Real Picture
The mouse buttons, I believe, run the entire length of the mouse... which will make many palm-resters click accidently.
However, $30 bucks isn't bad...
Okay Microsoft, listen and listen damned well, as this is the last time I say this... Give me the ORIGINAL natural keyboard, and the ORIGINAL Intelliexplorer mouse... I don't want the fancy million button keyboards, and the god awful small craptacular mice... I want the originals back! You had something good, and you destroyed them... it's not the 'new shiny blue plastic' that will get you sales...
---
Programming is like sex... Make one mistake and support it the rest of your life.
Slow news day, I take it?
ok, 2 and a wheel, but seriously... museum quality?
It reminds me of those "modern" art where it's a blank canvass with a line running down the middle.
To me it's not art... nor does it look good. It's just superficial "designers" (Ugof need silence!) who think people want their mouse to have hidden meaning.
Sure it looks ok, maybe i'd even buy one if I needed to, but I'd rather have function over fashion. Right now I'm using Logitechs MX500... and I think it looks sweet too.
I realize it's trendy to bash microsoft at every opprotunity, but I think it looks pretty cool myself. I'm loving the optical mice that companies are coming out with these days.
I only wish the rechargable ones battery would last longer. We had to ditch a couple of gyro wireless keyboards/wireless rechargable battery mice units at work cause they got to the point where they would only keep a charge for 4 or 5 hours. They also would miss keystrokes from the keyboard if a palm treo 600 phone was too close to them.
The one really good feature about this new mouse is that it isn't form fitted to your hand, it's gender neutral, I guess, at least from a left or right handed perspective. I'm actually ambidexterous and the last time I bought a mouse for myself there weren't any wireless optical availabl at all that weren't molded for the right hand
I guess when they come out with a wireless version of this I'll be in the market.
This article has recently been linked from Slashdot. Please keep an eye on the page history for errors or vandalism.
What was the point of the Microsoft Bob link other than to bash Microsoft over something that came out for Windows 3.1 an entire decade ago?
I've never gotten the Clippy/Microsoft Bob obsession around here.
" Apple mice are hardly cool...in fact they're a pain in the damn ass to use. "
two different things.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
I've never gotten the Clippy/Microsoft Bob obsession around here.
It's because they're about the only two things that you can justifiably take the piss out of about MS that actually are undeniably bad. All the rest of their software, including IIS, Outlook, Win9x, etc has its good points as well as its bad. At least with Clippy and Bob, the zealots are on safe ground.
It's official. Most of you are morons.
But Microsoft Mice in general are good.
In fact, I would say that the MS optical mice are probobly one of the best things to come out of M$.
You know, I could say everyone was a newbie once but how about this: you will be old and stupid one day, too. Have fun while it lasts.
Marxist evolution is just N generations away!
I found one at a garage sale this morning - part of a $5.00 PS/2 (old 80286 vintage PS/2) system. If only IBM would make an updated version of this - same microswitch tech under each key, but add some of the newer features (USB, volume controls, etc). I'm sick of all the membrane keyboards. The keyboards happily on my desk now, and the other parts are waiting for trash pickup monday morning! As for the mouse, I hate the "full length button" crap - I hate that on the Macs, I don't think I want it on my PC!
...as is says on the web page.
That seems like a problem right there. How many average computer users know who Starck is? How many Slashdotters know? OK, there are probably a lot of Mac user who know. But if you have to say "this product is great because it was designed by Starck" while most people don't know who Starck is, where's the appeal?
Philippe Starck is in fact probably the best-known industrial designer of the last 20 years. He's a celebrity.
But his stuff (among his best known is an orange-juice squeezer that looks like a 3-legged alien landing craft) is the kind that yuppies in the '80s said "Oooh, it's a Starck! I need to get one to display in my condo!" Like I said, there are probably lots of Mac users that Starck appeals to. Anyone who would want a Starck mouse because it's a Starck probably wouldn't be using Windows.
That's not to say this mouse isn't necessarily ergonomic -- I'm sure Starck's underlings took good care of it. But as far as I can tell, the classic "soap bar" MS mouse got the ergonomics right, and I don't think most hands could tell the difference between it and the Starck. (Look at the touted ergonomic features -- smooth form! Ambidextrous! aren't these the basics that any mouse should have?) This mouse is being marketed solely on a designer name.